the gauntlet discussion

All things considered, Seth was feeling pretty decent in where he stood with the results from the first competition. His position clearly wasn't the best - not by a long shot, but that had been the whole point. Holding back to make sure no one neither knew where he really stood in terms of speed nor was he seen as a threat in his current position. Rather, he was able to hang back, wait for the results to be posted so he'd have a better scope of the competition. And he'd remembered the names of all those who'd really serve as competition. The Moss kid had been high up there, along with that guy Mitch he'd met not too long ago. Apparently he would have to keep an eye on him. VanKent had been ranked high as well, though Seth wouldn't have expected any less. He was hardly concerned about the first place winner - if there wasn't a target there before, there'd certainly be one there now. Ophelia though, he imagined she'd easily slip through the raider. Not his, though. Her gallery picture gave away how tiny she was. Fragile.

One snapped kneecap later and she'd be absolutely nothing.

So yeah, Seth was riding high as he stepped out of the shower after drying himself off, raking a hand through his towel dried hair. There wasn't anywhere to set any clothes, something he'd noticed earlier when scooting the floor out, which was why he had nothing but a towel wrapped around his hips. The sound of a stray drip had him whipping his head back, the only sign of any stifling paranoia he may or may not suffer from before relaxing, taking a step forward and looking ahead. Just in time to collide with a softer body, one a little smaller than his. And lookie here, wasn't it his lucky day, running into a pretty little blonde near the showers. "If you wanted me to go back the way I came, I'd be more than happy to join you." The words were said with a grin, one that spoke of charm hiding something a little darker.

Co-ed bathrooms. Communal bathrooms?! Why was the Academy doing this? They let in girls but now they were going to punish them with this communal bathroom stuff? Thank God someone had given her a bath in the fountain on that first day, huh? But now it was going on too many days without a proper shower; and boy did she need a hot shower after that disaster of a race the other night- not that Alice did bad. She actually did surprisingly well. Better than she thought she was going to do anyway. Either way, Alice found herself making her way to the bathroom, at around midnight, y'know real sneaky stuff. She had been hoping that everyone would be sleeping, or that like her the only people showering would be the clinically shy who were afraid of showing off in front of the other sex.

Of course, wouldn't it be just her luck that as she was walking into the bathroom, checking to make sure her little bag was full of all her supplies that she would run smack into someone else. A member of the other gender someone. A wet someone. And she actually bounced back from him, taking a step and a half away to regain her momentum and balance before her brain caught up with what she was seeing. A wet boy in nothing but a towel.

And boy oh boy didn't her cheeks turn a bright shade of pink as she quickly turned her attention to the left, staring at some tiles off to the side. But her attention was pulled back to him for a second, blue eyes widening with his words: was he really implying that? The choked squeak that left the back of her throat was certainly a strong indication that she was quite flustered by his words. Though she doubted he meant them pale hands still pulled her robe a little tighter around her body as she cleared her throat, eyes focusing on the tiles behind him and above his shoulder rather than directly at him.

"Nope. I don't need a shower buddy. I'm fine, so you can just uhhh go on your way...." Blue eyes focused back on him for a few seconds, trying to place him. Who was- Bryson? Or was it Brian? Something with a B. She remembered that intense, kind of angry look to his eyes. Quick to look away again she stepped to the side, giving him more than enough space to step past her and leave the bathroom. Thank goodness he seemed the only one in here so once he was gone she would be free to shower in peace.

It was funny, because you had the likes of Alice, oh so nervous and shy about the prospect of co-ed bathrooms - and then there was Seth. Seth, who was all too fine with the distractions this room would definitely provide. In fact, he was probably one of the few guys at the Academy who had no problem with the new policy allowing girls. In part because he knew his sister had every intention of following in his footsteps, but mostly? The view sure as hell was a fuckton of a lot better than it would have been last year. This new ability to work off tension both sexes would no doubt be feeling as the competition heated up, in a way that was mutually beneficial to both parties? Seemed like a win-win in Seth's mind.

And speaking of mutually beneficial, his eyes were drawn back to the girl before him, hands on instinct coming up to catch her even as she was literally bouncing back away from him like a fucking tiny blushing kangaroo. This was new. He was no stranger to girls gravitating to him, so away was a new experience for him. And that little squeak of hers? It was enough to make him smirk, eyes searching her face even as she was very pointedly looking everywhere but at him. Interesting.

"Are you sure? I'd be happy to make it worth your while." Was she getting what he was putting down? Or was she just not interested? The girl was avoiding his gaze like he was a wolf to her rabbit and she didn't even know him yet - wasn't that a wild thought? The words were said as his gaze dropped a little lower, scanning over her body with little to no shame. Because this was Seth, and previous experiences had indicated he had no need nor use for shame. But the whole thing was done with a purpose, as he was curious: was this girl capable of getting any redder? Because at this point, he was guessing no, but maybe she'd surprise him.

After a moment, he relented, which was surprising, wasn't it? Because up until that very moment, he had no idea he was even capable of mercy. Leaning back, he let a hand fall back down to his towel instead with a shrug. "Well, if you ever change your mind, I'd be happy to give you a hand in there." Winking, he took a step back, free hand raking a hand through his damp curls again.

Brandon?

Brody?

Brown?

Okay, his name probably wasn't Brown, but it had to be B something. Maybe she was wrong about the r thing. Ben? He didn't much look like a Ben. But Alice's thoughts continued to center on his name, trying to figure out what it could possibly be. Maybe he wasn't a B at all. Maybe he was someone else? That VanKent guy? Prince? The only guy she knew he wasn't was Nick- and that's because the guy had pushed her into a fountain, so she wasn't about to go forgetting his face anytime soon.

Really though, this guy was intent on being helpful wasn't he? What exactly did he want to do? Hold her soap for her or offer her a mint on her way out like a bathroom attendant or something? Why was he winking? What had she missed here? "Well if you really do want to help, you can stand guard. Right there," With his back to the showers of course, "And make sure no boys come in while I'm showering. I promise to make it quick," because she didn't want to be in the shower any longer than necessary, and already the blonde was stepping around him and towards the showers, with the intent purpose of just pretending that this boy was a girl.

It would be fine. He'd have his back to the showers. She'd shower. He'd get to help and everyone would be happy. Cause he wanted to be her buddy so badly.....apparently. Or else why would he have kept offering to help her with the shower. Was it some weirdly complicated system? No. It looked like a normal shower to her. One way for hot the other for cold. So obviously this was what he meant. "I mean....you did want to help and lend your services, right?" His intimidating boy services, were obviously best used when he was keeping the bathroom clear of other boys.

Obviously.

Alright, so little Miss Kangaroo over here definitely hasn't caught when he'd been implying in the slightest, had she? Certainly not if she was apparently taking him up on his offer by saying he could 'stand guard.' "Oh sweetheart, doesn't you have any idea how much more useful I could be then being a mere observer?" His lips were curling up into a smirk even as she was rambling on about him protecting her from any other boys who could potentially walk in. Because apparently, that was a fear of hers. But because he really didn't have much else to do at midnight that night, he found himself going along with it, walking to where she had directed him to.

"Take your time, I wouldn't dream of rushing you. After all, slow and steady wins the race." It was really too bad she wasn't catching on to any of the many sexual innuendos he was laying out for her like a hunter setting out a trap for its prey. Could've made for some fun foreplay. As it was though, the girl was completely oblivious to basically everything he'd said so far - either that, or she just really liked going for the innocent act. But no, he could read people, and there was nothing about this girl that screamed liar. It was actually kind of mind-blowing, how utterly open she was. Completely defenseless. He has no idea it was possible to be so vulnerable, not until he'd come across this small blonde in the bathroom.

And of course, if he had any idea what she was doing? Pretending he was a girl? Well, Seth would have been massively offended. Dropped the kiddy gloves for her right along with his towel, help prove just how much of a man he really was. But he was oblivious to that little nugget, obviously. Thank God for her sake, right? "Baby girl, this was hardly the kind of services I had in mind. I was intending a more hands on approach." The words were said with another smirk, one he knew she couldn't see but that she could sure as hell hear in his voice. And this time? Wasn't even a fake smirk either. Imagine that.

Seth was completely accurate in his assessment that Alice had no idea what he was implying. Why would she even consider that he was implying anything even remotely sexual? Especially compared to the other girls at this school. Even in her room alone there were two gorgeous red-heads, and the other girl - Bonnie - she had the prettiest blue eyes that Alice had ever seen. Of course, all her roommates were normally sized too, petite girls who could all bat their eyes up at boys and pout about not being able to reach the tall shelves. Then there was Alice...tall and usually self conscious about wearing heels because they could make her even taller than she already was. Height. What a curse. But luckily that this little blondie was more concerned about getting the right water temperature, so she completely missed that comment about him wanting to be more than an observer. Because then she would have been very confused as to what that could possibly have meant.

"Oh trust me, I really won't take long," Because ha, as much as she was trusting him right now, there was only so far that could go before she'd end up just showering in a swimsuit for the rest of the year. Alice had just stepped under the hot water when he was talking again, and she missed the first part of things, but definitely caught the last part 'I was intending a more hands on approach'. Was he talking to her? Or someone else? Wait...what? What could he possibly mean by a more hands on approach? Oh. Was he some kind of weirdo who wanted to like wash her hair for her or something? Maybe he really did want to be a bathroom attendant and hold her soap bar for her.

"What you're doing is perfect." Now she felt the need to reassure him that he just had to stand there, because what if she just didn't say anything? would he suddenly try to hold her shampoo for her? Or her towel? Nope. Best to just keep him there for the few minutes it took for her to shower. If only it was a race to see who could shower the fastest instead of a gauntlet, then Alice would've been number 1 for sure. Alice had been prepared for this excursion. She'd put her pajamas in a bag, and turned off the water before getting dressed in the shower. So when she stepped out she didn't have to worry about the awkwardness of a towel or robe.

Just her ridiculously old fashioned pajamas that were purple with adorable cats all over them. "See, all done! Barely even took up any of your time,"

Standing by the entrance as the sound of her fiddling with the water bounced off the walls, Seth found himself smirking to himself. I mean honestly, this was like the first time he'd ever found himself in a scenario where the objective of his flirtation seems completely immune to his words. Of course, there had been the coy women, women who'd shrug him off even as their eyes would linger a bit too long to be completely unaffected by him, by little miss blonde over there? Even in the face of him practically offering to be her bar of soap, she remained completely unfazed. Well. . . He wasn't sure if that was exactly the right word. Rather than unruffled, she merely seemed oblivious. And he wouldn't be Seth if every part of him wasn't tempted to step up his game, because her oblivion read as little more than a challenge to him, but something was holding him back. Even as he told himself it was merely a lack of wanting to make enemies soon, especially with a small blonde who could easily -and accurately- paint him as a wolf to her sheep, he could admit, to himself at least, that it was something more holding him back.

He wasn't prepared to see the fear on that face that was so quick to innocently heat up.

"Oh sweetheart, you haven't seen perfect yet. You think my presence is nice, just imagine what I can actually do with my hands if you'd let me." The smirk in his voice was evident and he leaned against the wall, hand raking through her hair again. "What's your name, anyway? I don't normally do favors without at least a first name to know who owes me something in return." Than again, his favors were normally of you-scratch-my-back-I'll-make-you-scream kind. But still, the same basic principle applied. Turning around to face her when the sound of the water stopped, he arched an eyebrow at the rustling of a bag. Well shit. No entertaining views for him then, huh? "You really came prepared for all this, didn't you?" As oppose to Seth, who hadn't even thought to bring a change of clothes.

And when she stepped out of the shower wearing what else but cats, Seth couldn't help but laugh. Honestly, there wasn't a single part of him that was surprised by that choice of attire either. "I think I would have pegged you for a bunny person instead."

Alice was starting to get a little disturbed with how intensely this guy seemed to be advocating his desire to wash her hair or.....maybe he just wanted to give her some kind of massage? She had no idea. And rather than focus on it, she decided to just brush off the comments, clearing her throat instead with the sudden realization of- oh yeah they didn't know names yet. "Alice." Although perhaps she shouldn't have been so eager to offer up her name, after all if he didn't know her name he couldn't collect on the favor. Because damn she really stepped in it this time, really owed him now. "Although you know, if we're friends then it's not really a favor. It's just a friend helping a friend. But of course, to be friends I need to know your name too," Although she probably wouldn't remember it.

What was that tone he was using? Not secretive.....but not friendly either. Or maybe it was friendly?

Her brows were furrowing together in confusion, especially now that she stood in front of him and he was analyzing her choice of attire. "A bunny person? why?" what could she have done to indicate that her pajamas would have bunnies on them? "Are you a bunny person?" was this his assumption because he had pajamas with rabbits on them? If only this girl had any idea that he probably didn't even have pajamas- oh how scandalized she would be then.

She really wasn't getting what Seth was putting out there for her, was she? That was the only possible explanation for why she was giving him no reaction. And by reaction, he would have expected either running away from him screaming or completely jumping his bones. The in between ones were always the boring ones, in his opinion. But she was most definitely the latter, if her appearance gave anything away. After all, kittens? Didn't exactly scream sex fiend. But who knew, maybe she'd surprise him yet. They were training for the Gauntlet, after all - it seemed everyone was capable of surprises. Which was what Seth was concerned about. And then she was giving him her name and he found his smirk, which had been barely hinted at when she'd come out from the shower wearing that, came out to play completely full force.

"Alice." He tested her name, tasting it, as his eyes sparkled like the little shit he was. "What if I told you, Alice," Moving in closer to her, he tilted his head, like a predator stalking its prey. And she was so blissfully unaware of the danger she was in around him, that much was obvious to him. "That my friendship's a little more . . . Demanding than that." In all reality, Seth didn't know how to be friends with anyone. Aside from his family, his relationships all existed for a purpose, a means to an end. At her question though, he found himself laughing. "No baby girl, I'm much more of a cat kind of guy." And of course she would have no clue what he was implying by that statement either - wouldn't stop him from trying.

Okay. So this was a little awkward now; for one thing he had no idea what personal space was did he? He was all close to her, like way too close for normal people to stand at, and he hadn't given her his name- which was odd in of itself. Maybe he just forgot to give it to her. Maybe this boy here was just awkward when it came to talking to people- or girls. He seemed like he was awkward when it came to talking to girls. And what did he mean by that? Her brows pulled together in confusion, lips pursing for a moment before she spoke up. "Demanding?" He was...needy? Clingy? A clingy friend? She supposed she could probably handle that, and her hand reached up, patting his shoulder with a smile.

"I'm sure you're not that bad. You're probably a great friend." Awww see, there ya go, a confidence boost. Hopefully that was what he had been looking for, even if he was laughing a little too enthusiastically about being a fan of cats. She could see why he might be a little awkward around people- obviously he wasn't quite sure what was going on in the conversation. It was like he was trying really hard to talk to her about it all, and baby girl? what was that about? She'd told him her name and- oh! He was bad with names too! Just like her!

And that realization had Alice smiling quite a bit, "You know, this is usually when you would tell me your name...." She prompted again, wondering if he'd get the hint this time.

If Seth had any idea as to the thoughts going through little Alice's head here. 'Awkward with girls.' Oh baby, please. If there was one thing he was fairly confident he could do without feeling the need to pull any tricks, that was women. Well, no tricks that weren't well appreicated, anyways. But as it was, he remained completely oblivious to what she was thinking, and for once his own brain wasn't on overdrive trying to calculate the interaction. He wasn't standing there in nothing but a towel, trying to decipher the best way this blonde could be off use in and out of the bed, or trying to exert a charm that was fake and carefully constructed. Instead, Seth was just enjoying the company of a kitten-pajama clad girl who happened to be completely and utterly unaware of every suggestive pass he made at her. It was the first time he'd been this amused since - well, ever.

At her confusion, his smirk only widened, eyes raking up and down her figure in a way that suggested he definitely wouldn't have minded if a lot little more skin was showing. Nodding, his eyes lifted to meet with hers again. "I require a lot more . . . Attention than most friends do." Of the physical kind. He was already getting the hint that everything he was laying out for her was going completely unnoticed, which was what made this whole interaction even more amusing. "Oh sweetheart, you bet I'm a great friend. You know, the kind of friend where your pleasure is my pleasure." And he couldn't help it - he was laying it on so thick for this innocent little kangaroo here, he found himself laughing.

He was half tempted on asking what she was willing to do to get his name, but instead he settled on simply smiling, hand running through his hair as he answered, "Seth. My name's Seth."

@ Kathryn

Most people probably waited until like 3am to shower in the coed bathrooms, since anyone who valued their sleep wouldn't want to wake up and shower (even if it meant an empty bathroom), that way they could get time alone at a non-peak time. Lyca wasn't most people, because she had her knives. Even though it wasn't really against the rules to jump someone in the bathroom, or anywhere else on campus, she hadn't done well enough in the first competition to be a treat, so she wasn't super worried about it. The only person she'd be worried about killing her while she was in the shower would be Nate, but they were cool, right?

Lyca dropped her toiletry bag next to a shower, hanging up her towel on the hook. She wasn't sure why she felt on edge so much, she had showered here a few times. Maybe she just felt weird about having a run in with a kid in the training center that had roughed her up a bit. It was whatever. She took off her shirt and threw it on top of her bag, stripping off her pants as well. Lyca paused at her ankle strap that contained her knife, feeling an odd prickly sensation on her neck. Was someone watching her or like?

Lyca straightened with her knife in hand, scanning the bathroom. There was someone! She threw her knife in the general direction of the perpetrator, knowing before it stuck that the knife would dig itself into the tile behind the guy's head -- since she had realized at the last second who it was and released a little lower. "Jesus Christ, Dan. Do you have a death wish today? Dies in bathroom by half naked girl isn't really what you want your family to hear about you, is it?"

Normally, the middle of the night wasn’t his idea of a good time, but after his conversation and prank with… oh shit, he hadn’t even gotten her name. Well, after planning the prank with whatshername, Dan had gone back to his room to lay down for a moment, just to rest. When he woke up eight hours later in the middle of the night, he realized his mistake. But his body was fully alert, so he had figured a shower wouldn’t hurt. He had woken up covered in a layer of sweat and dirt from his run-in with Nora, and his entire torso ached. Sure enough, once he had gotten out into the hall to walk to the bathroom, he had nice purple bruises scattered all over his torso. He definitely didn’t need other people knowing about his injury, lest they zero in on him as a target, so this late time was probably the best time.

Armed with a towel and his toiletry bag, Dan slowly pushed open the door. No one in their right mind would be in here at this time of night. If they got called to a competition like the last time, they’d have one hell of an explanation for when they showed up for whatever the task was naked. Dan started to move towards the showers, but the quick sound of movement triggered his quick reflexes. He dropped to a crough as the sound of a knife slicing the air sailed an inch past his ear and fixed itself into the tile behind where his head had just been. Oh. Not good. Who the hell was out to kill him in the freaking bathroom? Dan whipped his head around in the direction of where the knife had come from, only to see a half-dressed Lyca looking at him with as much surprise and bewilderment as he was sure was on his face.

“I didn’t think so…” Dan said, slowly pushing himself back up to standing on his feet. Oh, not good. His shoulder and ribs made their displeasure with his sudden movements very clear, and Dan tried his best not to let the pain show in his face. Yup. Those were definitely bruised bones. Wonderful. And Lyca was throwing knives at his head. “That would be a pretty sucky way to die.” He added, blowing a breath out of his mouth. “What the heck are you doing in here so late?” He asked, turning to pull out her knife with his free hand, before flipping it back to her. “Scared someone will jump you if you use the bathroom in the daylight?”

Once Lyca realized it was Dan, she had the itching urge to cover herself with her towel, but she resisted -- she didn't want it to seem like she was not confident, and normally she wouldn't have a problem if someone else was in here. But this was Dan. And before the academy she would have stripped in front of him because it didn't mean anything, but now... well, things had happened, and she wasn't sure what it meant, but she knew she was fighting off a blush standing there in front of him in a black sports bra and purple underwear. Though the almost blush probably had more to do with almost hitting him with a knife.

Ahaha, so much for allies, if she was going to kill him, right?

Lyca caught the knife, thankful he had thrown it high and slow -- she was good at throwing them, but being on the receiving end was a little more sketchy. "I couldn't sleep, I didn't think showering was a crime." she teased, hopping back towards her shower stall. This wasn't totally humiliating or anything. She would totally live through it. Ahaha. "Did you come to join me or?" Say or.

“Is that an invitation?” Dan replied with a wink. He was teasing, but they were in a bathroom, she was standing in front of him in just her bra and underwear, he was shirtless, it was late, the joke it was too easy. Besides, he was allowed to make that joke, right? Things had happened since they’d arrived and they’d always joked about hooking up before. Not that they’d really talked about what had happened up in the ropes. There was still Jo to think about too. And the competition. Basically a whole mess, but one joke at that expense couldn’t hurt that much.

The look on Lyca’s face told him otherwise and he immediately backtracked. “No, I’m kidding.” He said with a chuckle, looking down at the ground and shifting his weight. So maybe he couldn’t make that joke. “I just came to clean off and wake up.” As if his dirt-encrusted self didn’t show that. He probably smelled too.

“Anyway,” Dan said, ducking down to pick up his dropped towel and toiletries, “you probably drown me in the process, since apparently being allies means throwing knives at people’s heads,” Oh yeah, she was going to hear about that one for a while. “Who knows what you’d do to me? I like all my body parts attached to me.” He said, giving Lyca a teasing grin.